National Professor Jamilur Reza Choudhury is laid to rest in Dhaka

National Professor Jamilur Reza Choudhury, the most revered civil engineer of Bangladesh, has been laid to rest at the Banani Graveyard in Dhaka.

He died of a heart attack at the age of 77 early on Tuesday.

The founding vice-chancellor of BRAC University, Choudhury was working as VC of the University of Asia Pacific.

Choudhury was buried following his Namaz-e-Janaza at Dhanmondi Eidgah Mosque after Zuhr prayers, his niece Shenin Ziauddin said.

Graduating from the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, Prof Choudhury was an adviser to a caretaker government.

He was awarded Ekushey Padak honour by the government in the science and technology category in 2017. The government honoured him as a national professor in 2018.

He chaired the expert panel advising the construction of Bangabandhu Bridge over the river Jamuna, the first mega project in Bangladesh. He had been leading the international advisory panel for Padma Bridge.

In addition, he also led the panel of experts in many other mega projects, including Dhaka Elevated Expressway, Karnaphuli Tunnel, Dhaka Subway and Dhaka-Ashulia Elevated Expressway.

Choudhury began his teaching career by joining BUET as a lecturer after graduation in 1963. He earned his PhD in structural engineering in 1968 from the University of Southampton in the UK.

As a part of his research, Choudhury developed a simplified method for the analysis of shear walls in tall buildings, commonly known as Coull and Choudhury’s Method is widely used around the world.

The works and contributions of Choudhury to engineering science and technology are reflected in various publications authored by him, including about 70 papers in international journals and conference proceedings related to tall buildings, low-cost housing, earthquake resistant design, cyclones and storm surges, retrofitting of structures, IT applications and policy issues.

Prof Choudhury is survived by his wife Selina Choudhury, daughter Charisma Choudhury and son Kaashif Reza Choudhury.